U.S. Sen. Susan Collins joined in two milestones while visiting Presque Isle on Saturday.
Collins addressed the 60th graduating class of Northern Maine Community College, then participated in a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Presque Isle International Airport terminal project.
The $38 million airport terminal will replace a more than 70-year-old building that was first designed as a fire station and no longer meets Federal Aviation Administration size or security requirements. The building and associated groundwork projects will total $52.6 million. The project received its biggest boost with $20.5 million in congressionally directed spending, which Collins announced in 2024.
Public opinion has been divided. Some fear the area can’t support a two-story, 33,000-square-foot terminal, while others believe it will build on airport growth and launch new opportunity for the region. The new terminal is necessary, Collins said after the ceremony.
“It’s a real problem that the current terminal, as is, does not meet FAA standards. That puts air travel at risk for this region,” she said.
The new terminal will not only increase the safety and security at the airport, but will open the area to economic growth, the senator said.
She recounted speaking with Cary Medical Center CEO Kris Doody about the difficulties in recruiting medical providers to the area. When they and other professionals land in Presque Isle, their first impression is an out-of-date terminal, Collins said.
That first impression will change when they enter a modern and updated facility, she said.
“I think this is important in terms of recruiting healthcare providers to Aroostook County, creating jobs and opportunity, and bringing more tourists to the region,” Collins said.
She joined several city, JetBlue and Maine Department of Transportation officials in a groundbreaking on site at the airport, tossing the first shovels of dirt from a pile.
At the community college commencement, held in a packed Presque Isle Forum, the senator said four values come to mind when she thinks of her own Aroostook County heritage: determination, optimism, hard work and pitching in.
Every student reached graduation because they demonstrated those values, she said. And because they didn’t succeed alone, she asked each to turn around and applaud their families and friends who supported them.
Their education from Northern Maine Community College education will deliver real value to throughout their lives, she said. She shared two suggestions with the graduates.
“First, please stay in Maine. Please. We need you,” Collins said. “I urge you to apply your talent, energy and enthusiasm right here in Maine.”
Her second suggestion was that they serve their community, whether as volunteers in schools, churches or hospitals, serving in town government or by mentoring younger people.
